Col J P Singh, Retd
The illegal trade in drugs and arms and its movement through international borders and terrorist organisations pose a serious challenge to political stability and international security. No nation, region or community today is immune from terrorist violence and drug abuse or its effects. Former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan reiterated, “Drugs are tearing apart our societies, spawning crimes, spreading diseases such as AIDS, killing our youth and our future”. Drug trafficking has emerged as one of the single largest money spinner for terrorist organisations, providing means to finance terror. Earlier the production and sale of narcotics acted as money earner. Now the scourge of drugs is increasing. UN estimates place the number of drug users in the world at 200 to 300 million by which illicit drug industry is accruing annual revenue to the tune of 300 to 500 billion $. The present terrorist-narcotics combine pulverises society by involving politicians, officials and security agencies. Drug operatives can bribe and corrupt any govt agency and officials by which they can hold the govts to ransom.
Drugs trafficking is posing serious problems to large number of nations around the world. It creates political, economic, military, health, environmental and psychological effects which consequently pose potential threat to political stability, economic and social equilibrium of the societies. For these reasons drug trafficking is an issue of national security in large number of countries in the world because large number of their resources are committed to drug related terrorism. Civil strife in various Asian countries has close link with the drug trade. Drugs provide an easy source of funds for promoting terrorism. Many countries have drug trade within or passing through their borders which pose serious challenges of subversion and border sealing such as we face in India.
Among the world’s largest drug growing areas is the ‘Golden Crescent’ comprising of Afghanistan, Pakistan and Iran & ‘Golden Triangle’ of Thailand, Myanmar and Laos. Myanmar remains the bread basket of opium trade. It is the world’s largest single opium producer supplying 60 % to the American heroin market. Afghanistan is at No 2. Total area of opium cultivation in Afghanistan and Pakistan is estimated to be 30,000 hectares. The magnitude of drug trade flowing from Pakistan to foreign countries is of critical concern to various countries. Due to Pakistan’s long coastal belt and porous borders with Afghanistan and Iran, its geographical location is ideal for drug trafficking to other countries. Karachi Port and the surrounding areas are used by drug barons to ship big consignments of drugs to Africa, Europe and US. India too is a transit route for illicit narcotics from Pakistan and Afghanistan for the Asian and European markets. Heroin is said to be smuggled through the valley in apple trucks. Nepal’s open borders with India and its closer proximity to Pakistan and Myanmar make it an alternate route both from Golden Crescent and Golden Triangle.
The magnitude of drug trade flowing from Pakistan to foreign lands is of critical concern to many countries. Illicit drug trafficking is Pakistan’s most profitable business fetching it a revenue of nearly 10 billions, double the Pakistan’s annual budget. The addiction to drug trade in Pakistan has been phenomenal. Till 1979 there were no heroin manufacturers or addicts in Pakistan. Current number of addicts is estimated to be 3 million. There were some factors which transformed Pakistan from non-narcotics state to a major producer of opium and a key transportation route to other countries. The first was Iranian revolution of February 1979. Khomeini govt banned all forms of narcotic production and usage. It forced traders and middle man to go abroad. Many went to Pakistan and Afghanistan in search of new pastures. They provided Pakistani smugglers an access to international narcotic network. The second factor was Soviet entry in Afghanistan which disrupted old smuggling routes between Afghanistan and Europe via Iran and Turkey. This caused much of drug trade deflected to Pakistan. The third factor was Gen Zia’s regime’s involvement in drug trafficking which gave further impetus to the drug trade. Senior officials close to Gen Zia ul Haq were known to be involved in various drugs related operations. Benazir Bhutto accused Gen Zia of having created a constituency of drug dealers, smugglers and corrupt elements in the society.
Drug money has come to play an important role in Pak politics. Enormous profits have enabled drug barons to establish their links with ruling elite and law enforcing agencies. They run a parallel economy and are capable of destablising any govt if their business is threatened. It is believed that drug money fuels political system in Pakistan by supporting election campaigns of political parties. Drug barons are believed to have become fourth power centre. They get elected to Assemblies by the sheer strength of their drug money. Involvement of Pak politicians in drug trafficking has been corroborated by the arrest of various members of National Assembly for heroin smuggling. Premier Nawaz Sharif’s govt provides vast opportunities to drug barons to launder their profits and legitimize them into banks and other conglomerates.
Pak armed forces personnel too are involved in drug trafficking. They started taking advantage of their position of power and country’s anti-narcotic laws during the martial law periods. Officers heading martial law courts were tried for accepting bribes form drug mafia. Many senior officers were also found involved in the drug trade by CIA. 2 Brigadiers and 13 Majors were convicted for accepting bribes from drug barons. Later 18 Brigadiers were sentenced to various jail terms. Major Farooq Hamid, Gen Zia’s pilot was also convicted for drug trading. Lt Gen Fazle Haq, once known to be richest General of the world was closely associated with NWFP based drug cartels. ISI which is running covert operations in India and Afghanistan is intimately associated with drug trafficking. Experts say that drug money helped in the growth of ISI from a modest origin to become an extensive intelligence network stretching to global reach in less than a decade’s time. Profits from drug trade are used for financing insurgency in J&K and terrorism in other parts of India. ISI of nearly 2 Lakh well trained and equipped operatives is being financed out of drug money. Linkages between drug trafficking and Pak funding of Sikh militants and Kashmiri insurgents is a well established fact. Sikh and Kashmiri militants have sanctuaries in Pakistan. They smuggle drugs into India and use the money for arms purchase. Hizbul Mujahideen is funded with heroin money. Sikh militants are used by ISI to ferry big consignments of drugs into Indian Punjab. Incidents like recent killing of a Nigerian in Goa by drug mafia are plaguing India.
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